To just list Mathias Gidsel achievements in the past four years seems a little absurd. But since he made his debut in a major international competition at the 2021 IHF Men’s World Championship, the Denmark right back has been absolutely unstoppable.

He was the All-Star right back at Egypt 2021, winning his first world title. Then, he followed up with a MVP title at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. An All-Star right back at the EHF EURO 2022 was followed by the MVP title at the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship, where he was also the top scorer.

In 2024, he continued his streak, being named the All-Star right back of the EHF EURO. And then he secured the MVP title, the top goal scorer title and the gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. He will definitely be in the All-Star team one way or the other at Croatia/Denmark/Norway 2025, as he is the top scorer of the competition so far, holding a 14-goal advantage over France’s Dika Mem.

But Gidsel is in a class of his own. He scored 64 goals on a 67% shooting efficiency. He averages eight goals per match. When he gears up, he is unstoppable, just like he was in the second half of the semi-final against Portugal, where Denmark secured a 40:27 win, when he scored six goals.

 

 

 

 

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Or in the quarter-final against Brazil, 33:21, where he scored four goals in the second half, and dished eight assists. Gidsel is the top scorer of the competition and has the joint largest number of assists, 41.

“I'm just really happy to be on the court. I think everyone who can see me being a part of this happy game knows how much I'm enjoying it. I'm playing on the best team in the world, have a lot of responsibilities. Of course, I'm also taking my chances, but it's so easy to be part of this group,” says Gidsel.

So far, in three editions of the IHF Men’s World Championship, Gidsel has scored 163 goals, an average of 6.52 goals per match. He has a shooting efficiency of 72.4%. And he is not a penalty taker per se, converting a single one throughout all the matches played at Croatia/Denmark/Norway 2025.

“Even though when you have a half good day, the guys are just supporting you. And, yeah, you can't ask for more as a human and a handball player,” adds Gidsel.

But has Gidsel ever had a bad day at the office at the IHF Men’s World Championship? Difficult to say. It looks like whenever he does not score more than two or three goals in the first half, he plays like a man possesed and torches the opponent’s defence, just like he did against Brazil and Portugal in the Unity Arena in Baerum, where the stakes were the highest.

“I'm really proud of how we are in every game, controlling every game, supporting each other, even though when we have difficult periods, and that's totally normal, even though we are a good team. We're not taking it for granted to stay here, to be here for the fourth time in a row,” added the right back.

Denmark indeed look like a cheat code, with an absurdly efficient attack, which averages 37.25 goals per match at Croatia/Denmark/Norway 2025. They are just two goals shy of 300 goals and if they score 37 goals against Croatia, the Scandinavian side will have the best attacking outing in a single edition of the IHF Men’s World Championship, with their record currently at 334 goals at Sweden 2011. The only difference? 14 years ago, they played 10 matches. This time, they will have only nine matches played.

But it all comes down to the desire of dominating. Of winning. Not at all costs, but with a highly-efficient machine, basically built to dismantle any defence.

This Denmark side is without Mikkel Hansen, arguably one of the best players in history and the all-time goal scorer of the IHF Men’s World Championship. And also without Niklas Landin, arguably one of the best goalkeepers which handball has ever seen.

 

 

 

 

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But the Scandinavian side does not look to be making a step back from the side which produced some of the best handball ever seen in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games final against Germany, when they demolished their opponents, 39:26.

They score, score, score and do not let their opponents breathe, with attacks coming in waves, all engineered by Nikolaj Jacobsen, who can become the second coach in history to secure the World Championship gold four times.

“We are not taking it for granted. Every time before we go into this tournament, we are sitting down as a group and trying to figure out how can we be better every time. Even though we're coming as Olympic champions and World champions three time in a row we are sitting down and sometimes the coach will say that we are playing at 80%,” says Gidsel.

“We are coming as Olympic champions, no? What do you mean? And that's just showing which type of group we are as humans and players. We're always trying to improve, even though we know that maybe we are the best team. So now we're here one time again and we try to make history again”.